What is an activist investor, exactly? Well, it depends on who you ask. Defenders of activism -and activist investors themselves - will tell you that they take positions in mismanaged companies, redress the balance between greedy managers and deserving shareholders and create long-term value...
We continue to read about layoffs and the still-looming tsunami of downsizings. More than three million workers are expected to file for unemployment benefits before the summertime, due to the impact of the coronavirus...
There’s a lot of discussion these days about preparedness. Preparedness for the pandemic, preparedness for the recession, preparedness for the unknown and the unthinkable. And there’s a lot of discussion about blame as well. They should have seen it coming, they should have seen the signs, they should have had a plan...
It isn’t “Love in the Time of Cholera,” but companies will face significant challenges in corporate governance in the time of coronavirus...
Chief executives of large U.S. companies rode a more than decadelong bull market to a string of record pay days...
The COVID-19 outbreak – now officially categorized by the World Health Organization as a global pandemic – has quickly developed into a historic public health crisis. As the response to the COVID-19 pandemic evolves and companies take action to address the impacts of the pandemic on their businesses...
A governance board will identify risks to the company and strategies to ... private business owners get really clear that corporate governance is good ...
It's hardly a new complaint. Indeed, the headlines raging against shockingly big paychecks collected by United States CEOs have been regularly recirculated for years. This time, though, against a backdrop of consumers' concern over online privacy and frustration over lingering inequality, efforts from Walt Disney (NYSE:DIS) and Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) shareholders have finally struck a receptive nerve that will incite actual change in how corporate chiefs are compensated. AT&T (NYSE:T) shareholders may be ready to jump on the bandwagon, too, after learning its CEO John Stankey received a 36% raise last year despite a string of ...
The lines between shareholder activist strategies and traditional private equity strategies are starting to become blurred.
Historically, private equity firms have adhered to the “rules of the road” set out by companies looking to explore strategic alternatives or realise monetisation events for their equity holders...
As the world reacts to the COVID-19 pandemic, directors on corporate boards play a vital role in navigating the path forward. Key issues facing corporate directors include:
Temporary succession planning could become a more pressing issue in the coming weeks, as companies prepare for the possibility of executive absences related to the coronavirus pandemic, governance experts say. Finance chiefs, long seen as a steady hand within an organization, are likely contenders to temporarily fill a chief executive or chairman post if needed...
Last fall, Senators Chuck Grassley, Tammy Baldwin, Joni Ernst, and Dick Durbin introduced the Whistleblower Programs Improvement Act , which protects financial whistleblowers who report internally from retaliation. This law mirrors the Whistleblower Protection Reform Act of 2019 which passed in the House of Representatives last spring...
March 17, 2020 In a rare vote against the company’s executive compensation package, a majority of Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM ) shareholders recently said no to the pay of CEO Steve Mollenkopf and the rest of the company’s named executive officers. Is this something that should change your views on ...
Despite the current challenges being endured by startup communities all over the world as a result of COVID-19, ongoing geopolitical tensions and stock market destabilization, 2020 is still a pretty good time to be a founder looking to grow a business in the burgeoning global tech sector...
Facebook went public with an all-male board, but nearly achieved gender parity last week when it added two women directors . The announcement came as companies face growing pressure from employees, customers, investors, and lawmakers to increase diversity within their ranks, especially among upper leadership. While the tech industry has moved slow so far, companies like Alphabet, Amazon, Airbnb, and HP are at least making some progress in the boardroom...
Corporate boards have important duties to perform as responses to the new coronavirus, known as COVID-19, ripple around the world, disrupting supply chains, upsetting consumer spending, and placing anybody from political leaders to whole city populations under quarantine...
The company's recovery faces major challenges in the face of intense competition. Lawrence Rothman, CFA Mar 15, 2020 at 3:11PM Newell Brands ( NASDAQ:NWL ) has had a rough few years with shareholders suffering the consequences. The stock is trading at just one-quarter of its value from three years ago. This comes after Newell completed an ill-advised $13 billion cash-and-stock acquisition of Jarden in 2016. Data by YCharts ...
The role of the corporate director and the responsibilities of the board have never been more challenging — yet vital in creating and protecting the companies and stakeholders that corporate directors serve...
Bankers and advisers insist they often advise their clients not to do potentially value-destroying deals — in reality, they hardly do...
Your company’s board of directors is charged with reviewing all kinds of risks to the corporation. But how well prepared are its members to do so?...
It seems almost trite to say that shareholder primacy has long been the dominant consideration for corporations and that directors and officers (D&Os) should carefully consider the duties they owe to the corporations they work for...
We are in the midst of a corporate governance pivot from short term stockholder returns towards stakeholder capitalism that values the interests of employees, the environment, customers and the world at large...
Companies will face more scrutiny than ever in 2020, and general counsel must help executives and directors understand changing expectations of firm behavior...